public transport Archive

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  Last chance to get Dominion Road bus/cycle way - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  Just a reminder that the last day for submissions on the redesign of Dominion Road is this Sunday, 29th of August. I’ve commented on this issue before so will be brief.  Auckland City Council is planning to redesign Dominion Road, one of the busier roads in central Auckland. Their plans for redesign currently involve letting [...] read more
  August 26, 2010 4:13 pm - 5 Comments
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  Auckland rail about to overtake Wellington? - by frog

  
  
  
  Rail service management in Wellington and Auckland seem to be experiencing a bit of a role-reversal lately. Wellington has a long history of (relatively) good public transport, starting with electrification of the regional rail line in the 1950s, and the highest bus and train mode share in the country.  This has no doubt contributed to [...] read more
  August 13, 2010 5:42 pm - 8 Comments
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  Trains are cheaper than helicopters - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Recently Steven Joyce, our Minister of Trucking Transport, claimed it would cost less to fly somebody by helicopter from Hamilton to Auckland than it would to subsidize a commuter rail service between the two cities. Luckily, Hamilton City Councillors quickly responded, pointing out that the actual cost of subsidizing a commuter rail service is hundreds [...] read more
  August 4, 2010 3:50 pm - 24 Comments
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  Banks’ bus-lane plan utter madness - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  If you’ve been reading the Herald lately you might feel that anything anybody could ever want to say about bus-lanes has been said already. To summarise, right now a lot of people in Auckland are being ticketed for moving into a bus-lane more than 50 meters (the legally allowed maximum) before they need to turn [...] read more
  July 29, 2010 10:53 am - 11 Comments
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  Fast-track the CBD rail loop - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Keith and I launched our Fast-track the CBD Rail Loop campaign today at Britomart – we had some great speakers and  I’m stoked to be promoting such an awesome transport project. I also had a chat to Sean Plunket about the loop today on Morning Report which was great. I’ve written a piece about the [...] read more
  July 26, 2010 8:11 pm - 43 Comments
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  Next Harbour crossing must include rail, walking and cycling options - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  The Aucklander reported today that the Minister of Transport has asked consultants to conduct a study into whether the next Harbour crossing for Auckland should be a bridge or a tunnel.* Parallel tunnels for road and rail going under the Harbour are the preferred option that was selected by various stakeholders  (including the New Zealand [...] read more
  June 25, 2010 5:34 pm - 27 Comments
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  Auckland gets trams - by frog

  
  
  
  As TVNZ reports, last week the Auckland Regional Council announced that they’re bringing trams back to Auckland. I didn’t have a chance to comment at the time but this is significant news. If you’re familiar with our transport history you’ll know that back in the 1950s Auckland had an extremely high rate of public transport [...] read more
  June 11, 2010 2:33 pm - 39 Comments
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  Auckland says sustainable transport, National says motorways - by frog

  
  
  
  I hopped along to the launch of the Auckland Regional Land Transport Strategy last week. I’ve blogged about the strategy before so won’t say much. Basically it sets a different direction for transport in Auckland than that favoured by the National government. It prioritizes major sustainable transport projects like the CBD rail loop for funding [...] read more
  May 25, 2010 9:00 am - 4 Comments
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  Holiday highway or a new rail link for Northport? - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  I had an awesome trip to Whangarei on Monday. I drove up there for 2 reasons. First, I wanted to look at the part of State Highway 1, from Puhoi to Wellsford, which the government is keen to spend $1.4 billion on upgrading. Second, I was keen to promote the idea of a new rail [...] read more
  May 19, 2010 9:54 am - 9 Comments
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  Why ignore an 11,000 strong petition for commuter rail? - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  As the Campaign for Better Transport reports, last week the National Party members on the Transport and Industrial Relations select committee where I sit, voted to not even consider the petition for a commuter rail service between Hamilton and Auckland. Putting aside the fact that in most countries you might expect to find a commuter [...] read more
  May 6, 2010 2:54 pm - 62 Comments
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  Stop trying to privatise our public transport Mr Joyce - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Last week the Waikato Times ran a worrying article about a review of public transport effectiveness that the government is currently running. There aren’t many details of the review publicly available yet but I’ve obtained this briefing from officials to the Hamilton Regional Land Transport committee about it. The briefing states that the Minister’s primary [...] read more
  April 23, 2010 1:11 pm - 29 Comments
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  Positive transport news from Auckland - by frog

  
  
  
  Sometimes life under this government can be a bit of a downer. Money losing motorways here, cuts to benefits there… It’s easy to lose sight of the positive.  So here’s some good transport news from Auckland: 1. The Wiri rail link opened a few weeks ago. This rail line runs from Port of Auckland (down [...] read more
  April 13, 2010 9:00 am - 5 Comments
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  The Nubrella and other cycling news - by frog

  
  
  
  Tip of the pen to the Cycling Advocacy Network who provided me with most of these links. First off – welcome to the Nubrella – a hands-free umbrella you can wear while cycling. So long, as CAN says, “you don’t mind looking like you’ve been partially devoured by a giant transparent caterpillar”. So will the [...] read more
  March 18, 2010 9:00 am - 9 Comments
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  Auckland’s CBD rail loop gets one step closer - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  A preferred alignment for an underground rail loop to run through Auckland’s CBD was announced yesterday by ARTA. This is exciting news as it means this crucial project is coming one step closer to completion. You can see that there will be three stations, one near Aotea Square, Karangahape Road, and Symonds Street. ARTA estimate [...] read more
  March 12, 2010 4:48 pm - 26 Comments
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  Submit to save the Stratford to Okahukura Rail Line - by frog

  
  
  
  Kiwirail is considering closing the Stratford to Okahukura Rail Line because of damage to the tracks after a derailment last year. Kiwirail has told the media they are asking for submissions from the public before making a decision. Although, in practice, I can’t see any mention of the submission process on their website… Anyway, if [...] read more
  February 10, 2010 5:36 pm - 15 Comments
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  Obama makes liveability central to transport funding - by frog

  
  
  
  President Obama’s administration has recently announced progressive new changes to the way future transport projects will be funded. Obama’s administration is now adding “liveability” to the measures used to evaluate new transport projects. “We want to base our decisions on how much transit helps the environment, how much it improves development opportunities, and how it [...] read more
  January 27, 2010 9:13 am - 9 Comments
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  Copenhagen Diary #3 - by Jeanette Fitzsimons

  
  
  
  Copenhagen has a public transport system to die for. With a population similar to greater Auckland, although covering much less space, it has a new (2002) metro that is very fast and I’ve never had to wait more than 4 minutes even though I’m near the end of the line. read more
  December 16, 2009 3:27 am - 5 Comments
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  National Out of Touch on Transport? - by frog

  
  
  
  I’ve blogged before about the gap between what Steven Joyce wants for Auckland (more roads) and what the average Aucklander wants (more public transport). It’s nice to see the Herald agrees with me (for a change). They rate Joyce’s performance as a Minister 6 out of 10 – not because he isn’t an effective Minister – [...] read more
  November 6, 2009 12:10 pm - 6 Comments
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  A host of cycle signs! - by frog

  
  
  
  The Central Connector is an excellent project that has improved Symonds Street for buses and cyclists alike. City Councils need more funding for projects like these. read more
  October 29, 2009 3:21 pm - 2 Comments
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  7 Months, 7 Roads, and 7 Days… - by frog

  
  
  
  Steven Joyce likes saying he’s tired of the “road versus rail debate” – implying that his government recognizes both roads and public transport are needed and important. But what does this government’s record on transport in Auckland, especially when it comes to 7s, really suggest? read more
  October 23, 2009 12:36 pm - 8 Comments